Discuss the latest comic book news and front page articles, read or post your own reviews of comics, and talk about anything comic book related. Threads from the two subforums below will also show up here. News Stand topics can also be read and posted in from The Asylum.

Since I'm in one of those moods (vague, no?), I decided to go ahead and make this week's thread. Read if you dare!

Batman #0

Written by SCOTT SNYDERBackup story written by SCOTT SNYDER and JAMES TYNION IVArt by GREG CAPULLO and JONATHAN GLAPIONBackup story art by ANDY CLARKECover by GREG CAPULLOVariant cover by ANDY CLARKE1:100 B&W Variant cover by GREG CAPULLO“We Can Be Heroes” Blank variant cover availableOn sale SEPTEMBER 12 • 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED TCombo pack edition: $4.99 USRetailers: This issue will ship with four covers. Please see the order form for more information.• Bruce Wayne has returned from his worldwide quest to take the law into his own hands!• This issue reveals the early steps of building everything that surrounds Batman – the costume, the cave, the car, the gadgets!This issue is also offered as a combo pack edition with a redemption code for a digital download of this issue.

(Digital copy link to be added, tomorrow)

Ze rules:

Review as often or as little as you like. Once you've posted 5 reviews, you will be awarded 1 pick. You can post 5 reviews, right? That's a totally achievable goal and with day and date digital releases becoming the standard, it shouldn't matter if your shop ordered enough copies of this weeks comic or not.

When multiple Review Groupers have posted 5 (or more) qualifying reviews, they will be awarded their pick in the order that they qualified. What constitutes a qualifying review? Any review posted (with a score on a scale from 0-10, that's right 0!) within 1 calendar month of the thread going live. Reviews are to be at least 5 sentences long. It shows that a) you have at least read this week's pick and b) you have some unique insight into the comic.

Reviews posted while waiting in line for your pick will be applied to your next pick.

I'll be keeping track of everyone's progress with the newly christened Spreadsheet of Fantastic (RIP, Spreadsheet of Doom) and reporting the results in the Current Members list in the weekly OP. When it's your turn to make a pick, I will PM you. If you do not respond to me by Midnight EST the following Sunday, you will lose your pick and I will start a poll to determine that week's selection.

Any week in which we do not have a Review Grouper with 5 qualifying picks, we will determine the week's comic via poll.

If it's your week to pick, remember to keep it under $3.99.

Naturally, this new system is new and it may be necessary to make changes as we go.

I've got next week's pick. Expect it to be revealed within 24 hours. Ginchy, no?

I would consider writing some reviews if I didn't get my comic books in once a month. I guess I could buy them digital if something looked interesting and wasn't already coming in. I'm kind of surprised that not many people here participate in the reviews.

Written by MIKE CAREYArt by PETER GROSSCover by YUKO SHIMIZUOn sale SEPTEMBER 19 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • MATURE READERS“What Fell Between.” Let’s take a step back here and find out exactly how Tom and Richie – not to mention the world – got into the mess they’re in right now. The tumultuous events of the missing year, complete with ghosts, vampires and a surprise visit from Madame Rausch, are finally revealed...

I’m not sure how I feel about this issue. I mean, it was good, as is every other Snyder Batman story, but it did feel really unnecessary to me. What does this story tell us about Batman’s early years that we don’t already know? It seemed like Snyder was so desperate to avoid stepping on Year One’s toes that he found an area that was rightly left unexplored. Set after Bruce Wayne’s return to Gotham but before he becomes Batman (aka the ‘Put on a Balaclava and get your ass kicked’ period), we see Bruce attempting to fight crime before his inspiration smashes through his window. It was all stuff we’ve seen before in 2 pages, but stretched out to 20. I will say there were some cool ideas here, like the idea of Bruce living in Crime Alley, and it’s always fun to see the Joker before he became the Joker, but this is not a story about Batman’s past that needs to be told. This is the equivalent of the Green Lantern Corps Cafeteria, we don’t need to see it. And plus, the issue ends on a cliffhanger! When are we going to see the conclusion to this story? In a year’s time for #0.5 or whatever? Or will this stuff be shown in the Joker story? Hmmmm. The back-up story was pretty cool though, showing how Batman’s first appearances inspired all of his main sidekicks (the first 3 Robins and Batgirl), but I’m sure this caused some continuity conniptions for some people, how did he get through so many sidekicks in only 6 years, and how come they all seem to be the same age?

I just don't get Punchy - he loved the awful Action #0 from last week and then goes a different direction for the vastly superior Batman #0.

First - the art. From Quasar to Batman, the guy draws a great Batman comic. (Wish he didn't disappear for the decades inbetween). The work is crisp and flows with the narrative easily. Great stuff.

Second - the story. Yes we've all seen the 'get beat up' Bruce Wayne ever since Miller introduced him way back when, but there's plenty more for this time in Bruce's life to explore and Snyder does - namely the first meeting between Bruce and (assumedly) the Joker. Bruce tries to wiseguy his way into the Red Hood's gang (only to get caught as well as failing to save any of the hostages (which were killed in a wickedly sinister (and delicious) way)).

If Snyder failed anywhere it was with the whole boomerang countdown scene. Since we know one of the principals players there doesn't know what we know in the present day, the suspense was lacking. Still, as #0 issues go, this was one of the better ones so far.

The back-up was pretty darn good too. I liked the way Tynon gave us mini origins for Dick, Jason, Tim & Barbara; and Andy Clarke on art? He was great on REBELS a couple years ago, and in that time he only got better!

Based off my opening comment about Punchy's review, I can't stop comparing Batman #0 to Action #0. And every way I look at it's night and day in terms of plot, writing and art.